Rokas Lipeikis, the owner and head of Egzotika, won the Lithuanian and Baltic rally cups ten times and reigned over Lithuanian rallying for ten seasons – including on snowy and icy winter stages. Few people know better what a car needs to stay under control on a slippery road. And yet, when the conversation turns to winter tyres, the retired racer is a firm conservative: for northern winters, the best choice is studded tyres. Every other option, he says, is a greater or lesser compromise at the expense of safety.
He also warns against drawing far-reaching conclusions from a winter or two with little snow: ice, freezing rain and black ice can come in any winter.
1. How should you choose winter tyres?
"Winter tyres must be chosen very responsibly, without taking the bait of advertising – some of it shamelessly false. There is no in-between type and no in-between compound, so the choice comes down to studded tyres, Nordic soft-compound friction tyres, and hard-compound winter tyres designed for Central Europe. Which of these to pick should be decided not by the 'good' letters on the EU tyre label, which mainly hint at braking distances in summer-like conditions, but by where and how you actually drive," explains Rokas Lipeikis.
2. Why studded tyres?
In Finland the temperature stays below zero for most of the winter, and when thaws alternate with frost, the most dangerous conditions of all appear: freezing rain and especially treacherous black ice. In such conditions, according to Lipeikis, quality studded tyres are the safest and most versatile choice.
Finnish studded-tyre rules and dates are in the guide Studded tyres in Finland.
3. Noise versus safety: how technology has moved on
According to the experienced specialist, studded tyres have arguably just one drawback – they make slightly more noise. But tyre manufacturers keep refining stud technology, and studded tyres keep getting quieter. Modern studded tyres carry more studs than before, and the studs themselves are smaller and lighter, so noise has been reduced considerably while grip on ice has improved markedly. The cabin noise of a modern studded tyre is only marginally higher than that of a friction tyre – a trifle compared with the ability to manoeuvre and avoid the worst outcome in a critical situation.
For Lipeikis, keeping the car under control matters even more than braking distance: the most painful consequences come not when you slide into the car in front, but when a bend turns out to be too sharp and, control lost, the car drifts into the oncoming lane – or when a car is hurtling straight at you and you no longer have the grip for a quick, decisive evasive manoeuvre. "To sum up: on dry or wet roads you can drive safely on any winter tyres, but in the most extreme winter conditions studded tyres are the safest. Every driver decides their own priorities; I am firmly convinced that safety on an icy road – something no winter has yet spared us – matters most," says Lipeikis.
4. Studs make the road safer for others too
Road-safety experts point out one more detail: studded tyres roughen the surface of icy or hard-packed snowy roads, which can make driving safer even for cars on friction tyres. When counting the cost of resurfacing stud-worn roads or repainting road markings, it is worth weighing the cost of accidents on slippery roads as well.
5. When studs are not an option – a Nordic friction tyre
Lipeikis recommends studded tyres for most drivers. The exceptions are those who mostly drive on well-maintained streets in big cities, and those who regularly drive to countries where studs are banned, such as Germany or Poland. If for reasons like these you have to give up studs, the best choice is a Nordic soft-compound friction tyre.
"It is a perfectly good alternative for those who cannot use studded tyres. In difficult winter conditions such tyres fall behind studded ones mainly on ice," advises Lipeikis.
6. Myth vs. reality about soft compounds
Lipeikis also addresses some stereotypes about soft-compound tyres – that they supposedly "behave poorly on clean asphalt" or "wear out very quickly". That may have been true of soft-compound tyres designed around 20 years ago, such as the Nokian Hakkapeliitta Q or the Dunlop Graspic DS3. Since then, manufacturers have launched two or three new generations: modern friction tyres are produced with T (up to 190 km/h) and H (up to 210 km/h) speed ratings and allow precise, effective handling both on clean asphalt and in harsh winter conditions. According to Lipeikis, the braking distance of, say, a Bridgestone Blizzak VRX on clean asphalt is almost identical to that of the hard-compound Continental TS 830 – from 100 km/h the latter stops only about a metre sooner. At lower speeds the difference would not be felt at all. The same goes for wear: if you do not drive on them in summer and avoid aggressive starts, hard braking and abrupt manoeuvres on asphalt, they will serve you for years.
7. Hard compound – not for northern winters
"Hard-compound winter tyres are not bad in themselves, but they were created for Central European markets and are not suited to northern conditions: at low temperatures they harden considerably, grip suffers, and on ice they are completely unreliable. You meet icy roads even in the mildest winters – it takes just one slide into the oncoming lane in a bend for the consequences to be very painful," observes Lipeikis.
8. Are all-season tyres worth it in winter?
Lipeikis recommends resisting the temptation to drive on all-season tyres in winter. They are an option only if you are absolutely certain that you will never have to rush somewhere in the very worst conditions – black ice, freezing rain or glazed frost. All-season tyres cope reasonably on soft snow, but once it turns cold and icy they stop "working". In Finland an all-season tyre counts as a winter tyre only if it carries the 3PMSF symbol (a snowflake inside a three-peak mountain).
9. When to change tyres, and how deep should the tread be?
"Safe driving in winter conditions requires enough tread – in my experience at least 4 mm. Don't wait for the calendar either: winter tyres outperform summer ones once the air temperature drops below +7 °C. On the other hand, fitting soft-compound tyres too early can backfire: tyres of this type are not designed for intensive use in warm weather, they overheat quickly and make the car harder to control in critical situations. Some manufacturers advise against using soft tyres above +15 °C. If the weather suddenly warms up after the winter tyres are already on, it is wise to drive much more gently and avoid long distances at high speed," stresses Lipeikis.
In Finland the legal minimum tread depth for winter tyres is 3 mm, and Traficom recommends at least 5 mm for difficult snow and slush conditions. Dates and rules are in the guide When to change tyres in Finland?
10. Tyre pressure – simple but critical
One more universal and very important thing is tyre pressure. Only when your tyres are inflated exactly as the vehicle manufacturer specifies will the car behave impeccably and your journeys stay as safe as possible. Both over-inflation and under-inflation affect how evenly tyres wear and how long they last.
Check and adjust the pressure only when the tyres are cold – that is, when their temperature is close to the ambient temperature. A very common mistake is to stop at a filling station mid-journey and adjust the pressure of tyres that have already warmed up.
Safe travels to all drivers – Rokas Lipeikis, head of Egzotika!
